A truly active six months for Wroclaw business

Startup Wroclaw and Invest in Wroclaw are projects that make sure that both the startup ecosystem and investors developing their business in the capital of Lower Silesia cannot claim a lack of engaging events conducive to their development. In the first half of 2023, there were exceptional amounts of activities – from substantive meetings for young entrepreneurs to the largest investment in Poland.

The first half of 2023 in the Wroclaw Agglomeration was full of events that will undoubtedly contribute to the development of this region of Poland. These include, first and foremost, the major investments that have been announced here.

The largest foreign investment in Poland will be built near Wroclaw

Certainly among the most important events that took place this year was the announcement of the largest and most expensive investment in Poland. U.S.-based Intel will set up a Semiconductor Integration and Testing plant to be built in the Wroclaw metropolitan area in Miekinia. The plant will help meet the critical demand for semiconductor integration and testing capabilities that Intel predicts will occur by 2027. The investment could be worth as much as $4.6 billion, and up to 2,000 employees will find work there. In addition, the construction itself will create several thousand additional jobs.

– This investment is a great deal! For me it is a great honor and I am very happy on behalf of America – said Mark Brzezinski, U.S. Ambassador to Poland. – We want Poland to develop dynamically, and Intel's investment is the best guarantee of that.

The surroundings of Wroclaw were chosen for the location of the new plant due to, among other things, excellent infrastructure, very high potential in terms of availability of skilled workers and an excellent business environment and also strong IT industry of 36,000 employees, numerous startupsand 100,000 students at prestigious universities.

– Wroclaw has for years been a place appreciated by foreign investors due to its location, academic base, quality of life and openness of the authorities, as well as excellent support – says Magdalena Okulowska, president of the Wroclaw Agglomeration Development Agency. – Intel's investment is another step forward for our economy, infrastructure, as well as education.

More and more large investments

However, Intel is not the only large corporation that has decided to invest in the Wroclaw Agglomeration. In May, a ceremony was held to celebrate the opening of the PepsiCo factory, worth more than PLN 1 billion. The new plant will become the largest and most environmentally sustainable PepsiCo facility in Europe. It will create 450 jobs in the region, and products manufactured at the plant will be exported to more than 20 European countries.

The company's expansion in Wroclaw has also been announced by BNY Mellon, with the opening of another branch. According to Roman Regelman, Vice President and General Manager of Securities Services and Digital at BNY Mellon, the capital of Lower Silesia is an extremely important location for the company. – Currently, the Polish workforce accounts for 5 percent of our total staff, and soon it will be 8 percent – Roman Regelman says. – We employ 2,500 people in Wroclaw, but soon about 4,000 specialists are expected to work in this location.

A new Bosch heat pump manufacturing plant will also be built in Lower Silesia. The investment is worth nearly PLN 1.2 billion. The new factory will create 500 new jobs by 2027.

Networking at a high value

The beginning of the year was also full of interesting meetings. Back in February, more than 150 new technology creators, founders, investors, representatives of the business community and the universities of Wroclaw met at a unique event – Startup WRO Meetup, held under the slogan "Easy money?". Participants of the meeting primarily discussed funding opportunities for young technology companies and this year's prospects for raising funds for research and enterprise development.

– Startup WRO Meetup is a cyclical meeting that definitely looks to the future – says Magdalena Okulowska. – As benefits the startup capital of Poland, our integration is already an advantage and a hallmark of the Wroclaw ecosystem. We want to further improve it so that even more people can meet each other. The meeting was also attended by foreign guests from Israel, the UK and the Czech Republic.

In April, the second edition of the "Startup WRO Meetup" was held. This time it was attended by more than 150 participants, who debated how to conquer global markets, as well as what challenges they have to face and what mistakes to avoid on their way to foreign success.

– Networking is of huge importance at such meetings – according to Anna Mazurek, Head of Community at Startup Poland Foundation. Also according to Tomasz Szarek, legal counsel and managing partner at SDZLEGAL Schindhelm, these types of meetings are essential for building and developing the startup ecosystem.

– Our country lacks this type of arrangement – says Tomasz Szarek. – That's why I'm very glad that such events are taking place in my hometown.

A unique event for a unique ecosystem

Another important event in this year's Wrocław startup calendar was Evolutions: Meetup & Showcase. This time in June, founders, investors, creators of innovative projects, and representatives of the business community met in the capital of Lower Silesia. Exchange of experience, workshops with experts, a conference and a pitching competition for startups – all this could be counted on by the participants of the event, which took place in several locations: New Horizons Cinema, InQube and Coventry University Wroclaw. It was also streamed online.

–The topics of this year's edition included the most current trends dominating the world's startup communities, meetings with experts from Poland and abroad, and energetic networking – according to Paulina Muszynska, head of Startup Wroclaw, ARAW. – The traditional conference format was enriched with two new elements – a competition for startups and workshops held at two levels. In a word, it was an exceptional event for an exceptional ecosystem.

A report that will enable you to plan for the future

Undoubtedly, a significant business event this year was the release of the report "Digital Co-creation and other scenarios for the future. ICT development in Wroclaw Agglomeration 2037", prepared in cooperation with infuture.institute, which took place in February this year. Thanks to it, one can learn not only what is the current situation of the ICT industry, the changes taking place in it, but most importantly to know the prospects for its development and what scenarios can be expected here in 15 years.

– Working on the report allowed us to identify many important factors that affect the sector and organize our thoughts about it – says Magdalena Okulowska. – I hope that the publication will become a pretext for further discussions on the ICT industry and new initiatives at the interface of business, science and the city.

In turn, according to the mayor of Wroclaw, Jacek Sutryk, dynamic socio-economic changes are prompting strategic planning. – The IT industry currently influences all sectors of the economy. Therefore, its strong position in the future is of great importance to us – according to Jacek Sutryk. – The report, prepared in cooperation with all ecosystem stakeholders, is not only the basis for joint projects, but also an important contribution to the 2050 strategy we are currently working on.

An extraordinary meeting of 1,000 startups

Wolves Summit 2023, an international technology festival, was also among the highlights of the first half of 2023. For three days in May, the Wroclaw Congress Center was a place to talk about good practices in creating and developing companies and products, to exchange knowledge and experiences related to acquiring new customers and building relationships in business.

The event was held in Wroclaw for the third time. As Jakub Mazur, Deputy Mayor of Wroclaw, noted, these meetings also take place in London and Vienna, which shows the importance of this event. – Last year Wroclaw was ranked #1 in terms of the number of startups. This was also made possible by events such as this one. Wroclaw is a meeting city that fosters such contacts. The Wolves Summit is attended by the biggest players who are looking for the best ideas and find them here. The atmosphere of creativity, but also hard work fosters such contacts. And meetings held during the event, will allow young companies to attract commercial clients and collaborate with industry leaders. They are also conducive to bringing innovations to the market, reaching a wider audience and, consequently, generating revenue. Each Wolves Summit attracts more than 1,000 tech startups from across Europe.

– Wolves Summit, as a large international startup event, holds great significance for Wroclaw – believes Mateusz Jarzombek, director of the Business Support Center, ARAW. – We are the Polish capital of startups, which is why as ARAW and the Startup Wroclaw team we are very enthusiastic about organizing such events.

This article comes from magazine:
FOCUS ON Business #12 wrzesień-październik (5/2023)